Today, our country has provided more and more youth with disabilities opportunities to be part of recreation and competitive sport. Now, more than ever, laws and opportunities are in place to continue to make this a growing reality. Unfortunately, there is still great health disparities for children and youth with disabilities. We have over 5.2 million children with disabilities but the opportunity for participation in recreation and competitive sport can be limited if we do not continue to seek those moments. What we need are all communities and neighborhoods to have a greater awareness of the importance of a healthy community. To seek out resources to gain a better understanding of a healthy active community. Included in this understanding are the roles of health organizations and health providers. How disappointing it is for children and youth that have the greatest health disparity are not given the highest priority. As we celebrated of the 25th year of ADA, it seems as if we still are missing opportunities. To compound matters, one would not expect these opportunities to have barriers from insurance companies. Unfortunately, this recent event in regards to insurance cut backs has caused many to worry about the future of being healthy, active and of living life with no limits.

We are all athletes, every single one of us. We all have the natural right to move in ways that express our passions in sport, a healthy lifestyle and movement. A woman with Spina Bifida may use a wheelchair to move around in her own home, while an amputee with no legs may use prosthetics to walk around his neighborhood. This LCD that limits insurance coverage on prosthetics is not only limiting movement but life itself. If amputees can’t get their prosthetics insured, we might as well tie them all down and say “Sorry, your life doesn’t matter, stay put and die slowly.”

Taking away insurance for any type of medical equipment that promotes physical movement of any kind is an attack on equality and a spit in the face of those whom need aid from devices such as crutches, prosthetics, and even wheelchairs. Being able to move by any means is the key component of living a healthy lifestyle.

Prosthetics are vital to the very existence of those that depend on them. We cannot sit by and watch others deprive those whom wish to be active and play sports and just move in general. A sedentary lifestyle is not a lifestyle at all but a death sentence for those with physical disabilities and able bodies alike. Lives can be saved through movement. Prosthetics and medical equipment save lives.

What are your thoughts on this topic?

Author: Daniel Nong

Makara Daniel Nong
I was born "lucky". I was born with not only one leg, but with the motivation and drive to be successful. I was exposed to sports at the tender age of five and from there the rest is history. Throughout the past 15 years I have participated in various sports such as wheelchair tennis,hockey, and football. Where I excel most is in wheelchair basketball. Through my academic prowess and passion for basketball I earned a full athletic scholarship to play wheelchair basketball for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. I am extremely fortunate to have basketball as my vehicle on my road to a degree in recreation, sports, and tourism and possibly a master's degree in kinesiology. Since September of 2013, I have been interning at the Lakeshore Foundation and have enjoyed the experience of interacting with many different amazing people and learning about their adaptations in life.

Thank you for bringing awareness to this topic. It doesn’t seem right to make such prosthetic inventions with technology to make people healthy and independent to only have downgraded or taken away. Who knows where you and I would be Daniel if we did not have prosthetics.

Mak Nong

I couldn’t agree more. Our liveliness and vitality goes hand in hand with the quality of our equipment.

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NCHPAD promotes increased participation in physical activity among people of all abilities. This blog, is a site where readers and contributors can share information and generate new ideas.